A dislocated shoulder is almost certain to rule Wasps scrum-half Joe Simpson out of the start of England’s RBS Six Nations campaign.
The 21-year-old has been in outstanding form for Wasps but picked up the injury in the narrow win over Harlequins at the weekend.
Simpson is due to see a surgeon on Wednesday to assess whether he needs to go under the knife with an operation potentially putting him out of action for three months.
That would definitely put him out of contention for the opener against Wales at Twickenham on Feb 6.
And Wasps director of rugby Tony Hanks admits the injury is a big blow for the team and for Simpson.
He said: “We are really disappointed for Joe Simpson that he has had a significant injury at this point in the season, but our focus now is to get his rehab underway and get him back out on the playing field as soon as possible.
“He has developed throughout the season and is one of the stand-out players of the Premiership so we will miss him.
“His length of time on the sidelines could have such a wide range. It depends on whether it is managed through rehab or requires surgery.
“Joe’s form this season has set a high marker for our other nines, which I’m sure Mark Robinson will relish.
“Mark has a wealth of experience and is hungry to get game time following recovery from injury himself.”
Meanwhile England fly-half Danny Cipriani has been shifted to full-back for Wasps’ match against Newcastle on Sunday with Dave Walder filling the No.10 shirt to face his former club.
